Grand Chef Relais & Châteaux Colagreco’s cuisine defies categorisation. His food philosophy is all about freshness, simplicity, balance of colour and bringing out the true flavour of the ingredients. “My cooking style is fresh with a lot of green. I try to take out the green of the vegetables and express that on the plate, so my food is from my terroir – from my garden and produce”, explains Colagreco.
The fresh produce is combined with a repertoire of over 250 fresh local herbs and flowers to form the foundation of so many of his dishes.
With the Italian border just 30 metres from Mirazur’s front door, Colagreco has the pick of the markets on the Ligurian coast on the Italian side and those of the Côte d’Azur on the French side. His menus are a marriage of the taste and flavours of the very best of both locales.
What was your most moving culinary experience?
At the table of my grandmother Amalia; she made me love cooking.
What was the most amusing kitchen incident you ever witnessed?
The day when I left a bucket of water, in which I desalted some algae, in the cold room. Several days later, a bit unnerved, I found them and when I looked in the bucket, the water had taken on the pink colour of the algae. Then I decided that I should at least taste it. And this is how I discovered dulse water (the algae species), which I continued to use for a long time in one of the classical dishes of Mirazur.
Your best piece of advice for amateur chefs?
Take it easy.
- 2 Michelin stars
- Award for Newcomer of the Year, 2007| Gault & Millau
- 17/20| Gault & Millau
- Chef of the Year 2009| Gault & Millau
- 4 toques | Gault & Millau
30 Avenue Aristide Briand, 06500
Menton, France
+33 4 92 41 86 86